News: US politics, commercial interests, war and humanitarian aid. A dangerous mix.

US president Bush recently laid out a detailed budget request for $70 billion.

It includes $45.1 billion for combat operations for the war efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq, $3.7 billion to help expand the Afghan forces and $2 billion for Iraqi troops.
Also included are $2.2 billion for projected increased fuel costs for military and intelligence operations and $2.6 billion to transport and maintain Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles (MRAP) used for US forces in Iraq.
This will bring the total allocation for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to more than $800 billion.

Oh, and the budget request also covers $770 million in additional food aid donations, including food vouchers, seeds and purchases in the developing world. (Full)

Oh, and the Bush administration also slipped a controversial ingredient into the $770 million aid package, adding language that would promote the use of genetically modified crops (GMO) in food-deprived countries... (Full)

Picture courtesy ickypeople.com